BLEACH: DOI ATSUSHI – VFX SUPERVISOR – DIGITAL FRONTIER
INTERVIEWS
Doi Atsushi began his career in the visual effects in 1997 at Digital Frontier. He has worked on many films such as DEATH NOTE, GANTZ, I AM A HERO and INUYASHIKI.
What is your background?
My CG & VFX work started in 1997 at Digital Frontier inc. As VFX supervisor, I started in 2004. I worked on some famous films such as DEATH NOTE, GANTZ, I AM A HERO, INUYASHIKI and the Full CG movie RESIDENT EVIL: DEGENERATION and RESIDENT EVIL: DAMNATION as CG Director.
How did you get involved on this show?
Before this film, I worked on 4 films with director Shinsuke Sato: GANTZ, GANTZ: PERFECT ANSWER, I AM A HERO and DEATH NOTE: LIGHT UP THE NEW WORLD. So he hoped me to join this film.
How was this new collaboration with director Shinsuke Sato?
As mentioned above, this film is not my first show with director Shinsuke Sato, so I can understand what he needs and what he is seeking for. Sometimes, he asks for something beyond imagination. However, it pulls in creativity.
What was his expectations and approach about the visual effects?
Director Shinsuke Sato always seek a reality and presence, even if it is a living thing that actually does not exist. And at the same time, moving and impression must be cool.
How did you organize the work with your VFX Producer?
First of all, from the scenario, we calculated the expected number of cuts and the volume of the VFX and thought about how to fit it into the schedule and budget. We decided to reconstruct the original vision of the Manga world and design for the movie. The Hollow that appeared expressed the fact that it is a creature of the same world as the dead gods, considering the design that incorporates Japanese influences based on the original design.
Can you tell us more about the previz and postviz work?
Previz:
We made the previz for the Grand Fisher sequence. I decided the camera work and the Grand Fisher layout based on a storyboard as to how big it looks in the Open set. The Open set is LowPoly BG model is based on the CAD data made by the art department.
Postviz:
We scanned many buildings for Station Rotary for its CG model using Faro Laser Scanner. This equipment was very effective to make the building look realistic. The Station Rotary of this film was is a fictitious location with stores & stations.
After offline is over, we shooted Motion Capture for the digital doubles of Fishborn, Grand Fisher and Shibigami. Then we created animatics, final animation, cloth and hair simulation, smoke FX and etc…